Las Vegas Weekly

• Tweet
• 
• Print
• 

The great thing about having Curtis Kulig as the Cosmopolitan’s new artist in residence is that it gives us a chance to ask him how he handles the unauthorized use of his graffiti tag “love me” and, more specifically, what he plans to do about it.

For those who don’t know him, Kulig is the artist whose “love me” phrase, spelled out in graffiti font (and with a heart), is plastered all over New York City and Los Angeles. It even made its way into galleries on both coasts, as works on canvas or as sculptures. His work has also appeared through corporate collaborations in print ads, on billboards and in clothing patterns, and is briefly featured during the opening credits of Saturday Night Live.

But for all the attention Kulig is getting, he says he’s also getting ripped off—companies such as Kmart and Michael Stars have used his trademarked “love me” (phrase and design) for their own products. And Kulig even attributes a Victoria’s Secret product (and its promotion) to his “love me.”

The New York City artist has gone after some companies, but in the end, he says, it’s not worth it. Instead, he’s buying volumes of the products he says use his stolen work, and plans to use them in a gallery show in which he produces sculptures from the products. (insert your own “how post-post modern” comment here). It’s an ingenious way to grab hold of the situation—and comment on everything from counterculture and branding to intellectual property rights.

In the meantime, catch Kulig at Cosmo’s P3 Studio, where he’ll be working on fine art and commercial projects through February 14.